Two races were completed on the final day at the Martigues 2010 World Championships- one in the morning, and one in the afternoon.

To catch the forecast early morning breeze the racing started at 9.00 am - commiting competitors, coaches and race crew to an early arrival at the race site.

Fortunately the wind lasted long enough to get in one race before dropping - as expected. There followed a tense wait on the beach for the afternoon thermal breeze to kick in - which would be the normal pattern at this time of year. Eventually enough wind settled in and the final race of this series was completed before the 4.00 pm deadline for the last possible start.

At the end of racing on day 3 the boys' fleets were split into Gold and Silver for the last two racing days. However, just 1 race today for the under 17 boys Gold fleet and two races for the youth fleet as the strong mistral wind returned, once again keeping competitors on the beach.

This now means that Gael is in first place on the leaderboard, knocking Maxime down to second. Kiran Badlow of the Netherlands has equal points to Maxime but a worse discard. Fingers crossed that the wind gods are kind tomorrow - it should be an interesting battle at the top.

Jerome Pasquette won the first race of the day so he is now in bronze position in the Raceboard Youth Fleet, Louis Giard holds on to second place, leaving Thomas Goyard - who won the second race today - at the top of the leaderboard. Last day of competition tomorrow . . .

As well as racing footage, he talks to coaches to find out how they give kids the chance to live their dream whilst having a lot of fun.

More video footage from the British team

Day 3, Three for All

The Race Committee managed to complete three races for all fleets (except Raceboard Youth) today despite the late start to proceedings. Patrik Pollak (SVK 1 and author of the daily vids) has stamped his authority on the Raceboard Masters Fleet with five bullets. German Frank Spoettel and Italian Andreuccetti are currently second and third. Thomas Goyard from France leads the Raceboard Youths but fellow countryman Louis Giard is close behind.

French competitors Maxime Labat and Gael Cousin are on good form leading the blue and yellow U17 boys' groups. In the girls' U17, race wins have been shared out with five different winners in the five races but Israel's Naomi Cohen is at the top of the leaderboard.

Russian Andrey Zagaynov is a very strong competitor with three bullets and 2 seconds in his group and he leads the boys' 6.8 fleet overall. Italian Marta Maggetti has a perfect score at the top of the girls' 6.8 having discarded her race 3 result. Alexandre Bavarro at the top of the Open Fleet needs to watch his back!

"Long day at the office" by Patrik

2 Races for all on Day 2

The second day of racing promised a big improvement on the day before when it had been impossible to race - too much wind!

Unfortunately the forecast morning wind (from the north) failed to materialize - ensuring everyone had a long wait until the thermal breeze moved in. When the wind arrived, prompting the race committee to call out the racers, they were met with very unstable conditions, and further delays due to abandoned races and resetting of courses.

The race committees persisted, and at the end of a very long day - the u17 girls came off water after 8.00 pm! - 2 races were completed for all divisions and groups. However, there were lots of protests so a busy night at the club . . . First possible start tomorrow at 12.00 hrs.

Another Film from the Brits

"55 knots" by Patrik

Usually we wait for the wind but today . . . 35 knots gusting to 55! Safety is paramount so no racing.

However, it's more than a championship for these kids, it's an adventure - time to relax, meet new friends and enjoy beautiful Martigues.

And, while they stay safe on the beach, watch who obeys his animal instincts and takes to the water with his shortboard - even with a broken finger!

Record Entry for Martigues!

364 competitors from 26 countries, 4 continents, have registered for the Techno 293 World Championships in Martigues, smashing the 2009 record entry. With the Raceboard Youth and Masters running concurrently bringing the total number of competitors at CVM Martigues up to 435, this is the biggest championship event in windsurfing for 20 years!

Techno competitors will race on two course areas and a third has been allocated to Raceboard. However, the first scheduled day of racing had so much wind it was impossible to race - in excess of 30 knots with very strong and sudden gusts up to 55 knots.

Competitors are keen to get started. The forecast for Wednesday promises winds of around 16 km/h - fingers crossed! Stay tuned to up-to-the minute reports on Twitter.

Day One by Patrik

Second Day for the Brits

See how they prepare for racing . . . Top tip: "make sure you have fun"